BASF Completes Phase 1 of Geismar MDI Expansion
BASF has completed the first phase of an MDI expansion at its Geismar, Louisiana, complex in the US and taken an older MDI plant off stream. When the next phase is concluded, in the second half of 2021, the group’s MDI capacity by will rise by about a third.
The final phase, which is expected to push capacity forward from 300,000 t/y at the start of the upgrade to around 600,000 t/y, is due for start-up around the middle of the decade.
The MDI production complex is one of the pillars of the Geismar production complex Stefan Doerr, head of BASF’s Monomers business in North America, said the site is ideally suited for the investment, thanks to its existing infrastructure, competitive raw materials and ongoing strong business support from state and local government. All of the added capacity will be sold in North America.
Author: Dede Williams, Freelance Journalist
BASF has completed the first phase of its MDI expansion at Geismar, Louisiana, in the US and taken an older MDI plant off stream. Start-up of phase two is due in H2 2021. By the mid-2020s, overall output – earmarked for the North American market – will rise to 600,000 t/y. (c) BASF
